THE ISLAMIC MANIFESTO After thinking for many years for the sake of bringing an Islamic Society into being, I have come to the conclusion that there are seven points which, if put in practice in a right manner, not only can promise a totally true Islamic Society but can also guarantee its existence till the day of judgment. In this essay, I am writing these 7 points and will also try to clarify them upto a good extent. This essay is in fact, a condensed form of my 4 essays written in my book ISLAMI FAISLA (THE ISLAMIC DECISION) which was written and published in 1987 in Urdu. Please note that I have no intention to insult any individual or any concern but only want to convey the message of Islam to give a clear picture of what must be taken upon ourselves for the sake of making an Islamic Society. The fist point is that The Islamic Society is based on the teachings of the Holy Book Quran, Ahadees-e-Mubaraka (i.e. the Traditions of the Last Prophet Janab Muhammad P.B.U.H.) and the consensus of all pious, religious and wise people among Muslims. This point shows that Allah is in truth the one & only Lord whose orders are to be known from these 3 sources (and also by IJTEHAD, more about this soon) and then they should be obeyed with full belief. All other points are actually detail for this basic point of the Islamic Society. The second point is "In the Islamic Society, women and small children will be given special privileges in all 5 aspects of life". The 5 aspects are Martial, Education, Economic, Culture and Justice. The advises of women & children will be kept in view for such special benefits. The third point is "In the Islamic Society, the zones of Saturn i.e. amusement places as specified ahead, will be made". The fourth point is "In the Islamic Society, the 3 points' administrative system will be practiced with all its necessary detail". The fifth point is "In the Islamic Society, there has to be the recitation of the name of ALLAH". It is quite clear that when the Society has the Law of Allah as its base then the recitation of His name in the Society is totally necessary. This point is the first of the last 3 ones and these last three points have a special relation with a Muslim individual. It enfolds all the five pillars of Islam i.e. The First Kalima, Prayers, Fasts, Zakat (giving money to the poor according to fixed percentage) & Hajj (visit of Khana-e-Kaaba, Mecca with manners Islam specifies. The sixth point is "In the Islamic Society, there has to be an observation of the Islamic limits in Music & Photography and not only this but the HIJAB of the women also has to be practiced". By HIJAB, it is meant that the Muslim women must remain in their houses except for necessities which they themselves must decide with a true devotion to Islam. Whenever and wherever in an Islamic Society she decides that some necessity permits her to leave the house to see to it, she may leave her face, her hands uptil wrists and her feet uptil her toes uncovered. A big CHADAR or BURQA may be used in addition to usual garments for the sake of HIJAB. The last point is "In the Islamic Society, the three high qualities of human nature have to be present; i.e. -1- Good Faith among each other -2- Sacrifice -3- Tolerance". These are therefore, the seven points which do indeed promise the making of the Islamic Society. Before dealing them fully, first let us see them in a general manner. With the knowledge of Islam, it is not difficult to understand that the teachings of Islam can be practiced on two levels; level of Law (ADAL) and level of the GOOD NATURAL TENDENCY (EHSAN). The commands put into practice upon EHSAN have to be obeyed only in Love of Allah. With ADAL & EHSAN in view, when we see the seven points then the first point is basic by which we understand all the teachings of Islam, while the 2nd, 3rd and 4th will be enforced on the level of ADAL in the Islamic Society and the last three points will be practiced on the level of EHSAN. Note that there are 2 types of sins, i.e. Injustice & Shamelessness and 3 very big sins according to the Islamic viewpoint come under these 2 heads. These 3 are to worship anybody with Allah's worship or leaving Allah (this is the greatest sin and such a person is totally out of the Islamic fold. May Allah save all Muslims from this greatest sin-AMEN). This is mentioned as the great cruelty in the Holy Book QURAN in Sura Luqman. Mind it that the term CRUELTY is taken as to wrongly judge a thing. Two other great sins are UNJUST MURDER (a great injustice) & ADULTERY(a great shamelessness) as the Holy Quran points out in Sura Bani-Israel (May Allah save all Muslims from these two great sins also-AMEN). The seven points which I have tied together by Ijtehad (means to decide by Islam the action in a matter, which is not clearly indicated by the 3 basic sources), show what is injustice and shamelessness through the first point, then the 2nd, 3rd and 4th point attack injustice in the Society while the 5th, 6th and the 7th work to eliminate shamelessness. The third general way may be understood better through the second way of seeing these points. Man has been given strength as a special gift from Allah which if he uses in a wrong manner, cruelty takes place. Now, Women has been given beauty and a soft nature as a special gift from Allah, for which if she does not care to take Islamic teachings into her consideration, shamelessness automatically takes place. Islam has ordered women to observe HIJAB and talk to unrelated men in a hard tone when necessary (see Sura Ahzaab & Sura Noor). So the first point is basic, while the other 3 are to be taken into consideration by men more than women and last 3 by women more than men. However, both sexes must cover all the 7 points (mind it that the 5th point enfolds the 5 pillars of Islam) as the world is the place of examination indeed. Now, the first point is basic so I don't consider giving any argument for it while the last 3 are covered by the scholars of Islam by good reasoning so I will put here my reasons for the 2nd, 3rd and 4th points which I have forwarded by IJTEHAD. -1- The first point is that "The Islamic Society is based on the Holy Book Quran, Traditions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad P.B.U.H. and the consensus of all pious, religious and wise people". This point is very clear and Islamic teachings are known by these 3 sources (though Ijtehad also has a high place in this matter but it is totally based on these 3 sources of knowledge and it is necessary for the person making a decision in the Islamic matters by this way to be on the most high level of understanding of Islam, of the circumstances of the present world, of the subject in which he is going for that Ijtehad, of the influence it will put upon the working of the Society when put in practice and the demands to be fulfilled for that Ijtehad once it is accepted practically by the Islamic Society. Also, Ijtehad must be limited only to the matters not clearly defined in the Three Main Sources). All steps taken in an Islamic Society must have behind them a consideration of these 3 things and this point is so important that all other points are in fact detail of this one point. -2- The second point is that "In the Islamic Society, women and small children will be given special privileges in 5 aspects of life". These 5 are Martial Aspect, Education, Economic Aspect, Cultural Aspect (or Saturn's aspect as I have called it in the original text) and Justice. All benefits possible must be extended to women and children, keeping Islamic teachings in view. As far as the martial and economic aspect is concerned, Islam does not put any duty of saving the country or earning for living on women and children. These are the duties of men and they must care for the needs of women and children. A few details have been given in the original text but here for the sake of brevity, I will go ahead without putting those to pen. The Islamic reason to put this point in front for the creating of an Islamic Society is that Islam cares for the weak people. Those men will also get attention who are old or crippled, but I have mentioned women and children only because they are naturally weak and so will be cared for specially. The Holy Book Quran asks to pay attention for fighting in the favor of weak people (Sura Nisa - 75). Then, in this very Sura, Allah grants mercy to all those who have no option except to live with sins and sinful people. However, one must see one's ability and it is wrong to keep silent on sins for this silence in itself is a sin (See Sura Nisa - 97, 98 & 99). Then, in this very Sura, in Ayat 127, the rights of weak people have been emphasized. I will also point out that when Kuffar (the non-believers) said that leave out the poor people so that we may hear what you say, Ayat 52 of Sura An'aam descended, not to act in such a way (in fact, the Holy Prophet P.B.U.H. was ordered to keep the special company of these poor people as can be seen in Sura Kahaf - 28). Its a point to note that there are 2 levels of Economic position which must never be present in the Islamic Society i.e. to have so much of the worldly possessions and riches that much of those remains in spare (this makes a person think he is able to do whatever he likes and he challenges the Lord) and the second level is to have nothing even for the basic necessities of life (this makes a person neglect all morals and do great wrongs without thinking of their adverse impact on himself and other people). Much of this can be understood by studying Sura Baqara-219, Sura Zaari'aat-19 and Sura Balad - whole of it. -3- The third point is "In the Islamic Society, the zones of Saturn will be made". By these zones, I mean those places which may limit the equipment related with conveying appearance so that we may easily practice Islam in our daily life. We are using three kinds of modern equipment i.e. (a) those things which convey voice or/and physical appearance such as Radio, TV., Tape Recorder, Wireless, Telephone etc.; among these things those that convey the appearance with or without sound must necessarily be limited to the zones mentioned. (b) The second type of things are means of conveyance i.e. cars, trains, air-planes, ships etc. and these may be used outside the zones mentioned but must have some limits in their use. If you understand SIMPLICITY then to get the idea is not difficult indeed. Many reasons can be had only by observation if one has a reasonable knowledge of the Islamic law. (c) the third type of modern equipment are other than these mentioned i.e. bulbs, fans, cookers, stoves, irons, refrigerators, watches, calculators etc. These type of things can be used outside the zones mentioned. By this necessary adjustment, we can fulfill the demands of HIJAB of women, teachings about music and pictures as can be understood by the serious students of Islam. In Sura Maida, a verse says "Today, I have completed your Deen (ISLAM, i.e. completed in a practical sense) and put My Blessings in full upon you and have chosen Islam for you as your DEEN" (Sura Maida - 3). This clarifies that Islamic principles have been fully given in the shining period of Muhammad and also note that this verse is one of the last verses of the Holy Quran which descended upon the Holy Prophet. Please note that to keep quiet seeing sins is in itself a sin. We are facing filthy films and movies in Muslim lands because of this sinful silence while Islam does not allow photographs of living beings and we can not reserve them except for martial reasons and that also in a limited way (Study Islam for detail). Time has come when we must leave hypocrisy once & for all. All those things which are fully capable of conveying all the features of a person like TV must be totally limited to such special zones as this seems totally necessary if we are to create an Islamic Society soon. As for Computers, briefly it must be understood that if they are not used for filthy movies then they are one of the best things we have for Islamic study and learning. Hard Disks of great capacity with floppy Diskettes will be appreciated for the sake of knowledge but we must create an environment where naturally people ask for knowledge rather than falling prey to low desires. It is the demand of the making & keeping firm an Islamic Society that such amazing but totally Islamic actions like creating zones for the limitation of some scientific commodities, be taken and an environment be established where it may easily make its foundations. The basic argument for this point is contained in one word "SIMPLICITY" as this Islam demands fully from its believers. A true Muslim must never forget that the world is a place of examination and the coming world is the true destination. In AHADEES, life is said to be a travel only and as such the success in the life after this one is our true goal. The Islamic concept of closing the means of shamelessness, which is well manifested in the command of Hijab, totally establishes the fact that to lose self in the beauty of the world is a great foolishness and with this stance, the point is very understandable indeed. -4- The fourth point is "In the Islamic Society, the 3 points administrative system will be practiced with all its necessary detail". I have thought quite a lot about this and have written this administrative system that must be applied in the Islamic Society in my book ISLAMI FAISLA. Here, its only possible to give a rough sketch of the mentioned administrative system as I have understood by IJTEHAD and the demands of such a system must be gathered by the reader by his/her own intellectual level. The first point of this 3 points' administrative system is that "it would be practiced on three levels i.e. AMEER, HAKIM, & MUNTAZIMEEN". The second point is that "it would be practiced in accordance with 4 Islamic laws namely Principal & Scattered, Subject & Object, Hope & Fear and Advice & Command. The third point is that "it would be practiced through five channels of life, those being Martial aspect, Education, Economic aspect, Cultural aspect and Justice". Wherever this system of administration takes place, the country will be divided into many administrative zones. In every zone, there will be an Ameer who will be the guiding force for the Islamic way of life. Besides him, there will be 5 Hakims, each one would be the head of a channel just mentioned and these 6 persons will be chosen for 20 years. Also there will be 51 Muntazimeen heading one channel under the management of the respective Hakim, making these Muntazimeen 255 in total at one place. So, a Zonal Council of 261 persons will come into being for administration which will be a comprising unit for the National Assembly of the Islamic country. I will discuss the 5 channels at the end of this writing for detail for the sake of convenience; at present let's take the detail for the 4 rules of this administration. As far as the Principal & Scattered form is concerned, it is known that in the days of the great Caliphs of Islam, the administration was carried out by making a place DAR-UL-KHILAFAT (Capital) where the Caliph lived and from there, commands were carried out in the whole of the country. The persons in the local administration also had enough power to give orders and enforce their judgment in many matters without asking for any guidance from the Principal country. Though the world has changed quite a lot since then, yet there is no harm or trouble in making the same set up for administration as this set up has the power to correct its own errors when the administrators are loyal to the cause of Islam. This point can be understood much better by studying the golden period of the Holy Prophet Muhammad P.B.U.H. and the shining times of the Great Caliphs afterwards. Here, I would take the opportunity to give some explanation about the concept of NATION in Islam. This is because this matter has got much talk today. Please note that "Muslims can never be broken in segments in a real sense". Islam points out that there are only 2 nations in truth, the Believers and the Non-Believers. Quran clearly states that "Ibrahim was surely a nation, obedient to Allah, only attentive to Him, and indeed he was not among those who performed SHIRK" (Sura Nahal-120). Observe that only one man because of his pure Islamic nature is said to be a nation and this indicates that Muslims even if they are few in number somewhere, are as Muslims, a whole Nation. They are with other Muslims too and without them too a whole nation and this concept if understood, can stop much talk about this matter. Yasrab is still called MADINA (which means city) as the Holy Prophet made it his dwelling place. We Muslims give identity to land and do not take identity from it but our efforts must always be such that every where, the name of ALLAH gets glory. "Pakistani Nation" must always be said and written keeping this fact in view that this means the Muslims only and though we will care for the non-Muslim Pakistani, they are not included in this term. The second rule of administration is "Subject & Object". In the administration, its effect is felt in this way that there are some conditions to be fulfilled by the rulers as law demands and there are some conditions to be fulfilled by the ordinary people on the level of good natural tendency. The third rule of administration is "Hope & Fear". This is clear that when there is true hope only from Allah and true fear only from Allah and both of these come into being only with true love of Allah, then a true pious nature takes place. This must be clear in heart that all created ones are sources and channels of making good or making evil and the true power is actually of Allah only. Whoever may be the channel but Allah only in truth can create something good or something evil so the true hope and the true fear must only be from Him. This is an Islamic teaching and Hope & Fear is mentioned together more than once in the Holy Book Quran (see Sura Aaraf - 56, Sura Rum - 24, Sura Sajda - 32). The last of these rules i.e. the fourth rule is "Advice & Command". This rule is totally correct for all occasions where the dealing is between a commanding person and his subordinates. To give advice is the right of the people and the command keeping that advice in view is the right of the ruler (the administrator), to give advice is the right of the children and to decide for a situation is the right of the Parents, to give advice is the right of a wife and to make decisions for both of them is the right of the husband. This must be noted that there should be no advice and no command against the principles of Islam. This rule will be applied in many general ways but its special application will be in 3 ways. First is that elections will be held according to an Islamic style, second is that referendums will be held according to an Islamic style and third is that there will be a direct contact between the ruler and the people. The election will be based on weight of votes rather than the number of votes. The referendum will also be based on weight. Take this in this manner that when there will be elections for the Muntazimeen, which will be held every 4 years, the candidates will be required to get a fixed number of votes. Anybody who fulfills the demands of "Subject & Object" can be a candidate in these elections. These candidates will themselves set a target to achieve to be elected. If less than 255 candidates are elected than the local body of the administration will complete the number by nomination but in this situation, the elected candidates must be more than 215 in number. If the successful candidates are less than 215 or more than 255, then elections must be held again in which a new target may be given of votes to achieve. The elected candidates will associate themselves with the five channels by mutual understanding. Like Muntazimeen, Ameer and Hakims will also be elected every 20 years. The Muntazimeen may also participate here though the current Muntazimeen at election would not be allowed to participate in the 4 years election. In other words, no Muntazim can be elected for 8 years continuously except for this. By this election, 255 Muntazimeen, 5 Hakim and 1 Ameer will be elected. If more than 261 candidates win or less than 215 are elected than the elections will be held at such constituency again. Ameer and Hakim must not be elected from the nominated candidates and everybody who once gets into an administrative institution, will be allowed to enjoy an effect in the administration because when the ability is recognized then the effect also must be allowed. As far as referendum is concerned, it is a simple method to keep decisions correct. Whenever the National assembly has a decision to make of a very very important nature, then the nation should be asked for "Yes" or "No" about the point and there must be space given for their reasons in the referendum form. Wherever the weight seems to the National Assembly, that answer will be taken, disregarding the number of people an answer may have behind it. The third thing is the direct contact, which means that the rulers must have a direct link with the people and the protocol, paper work, personal danger must not come between this direct contact. This attitude is necessary in Islamic Society so that it achieves a great glory in respect of Humanity. Here, I would also put forward some more general ways to understand all these 7 points which we are currently discussing. These are based on grasping the effect of the 4 rules I have just given for the 3 points Islamic administration in this fourth point. As far as the Principal & Scattered form is concerned, the last 3 points should be practiced in a principal (individual) way for everyone can fully work to establish them in the society while the second, third and the fourth i.e. the point of Adal are those which should be practiced in a scattered form as the whole society collectively will work to establish them. The first point is the basic point which defines all rules. The second rule is "Subject & Object" and it has its effect in this way that the last 3 points are subjective as a person has to deal with them individually while the points of Adal are objective as they are to be dealt with by the society as a unit. The first point in basic. The third rule is "Hope & Fear", which has its effect in this way that the last 3 points are to be established by hope of getting a true and satisfying Islamic nature which leads to great love of Allah while the 2nd, 3rd and 4th points are to be established by the fear of law of the Islamic Society. The first point is the basic point. The fourth rule is "Advice & Command" and this has its effect here in the manner that the last 3 points have a character of advice while the 3 points preceding them have a character of command as they must be established in accordance with the demands of the law. The first point is basic which clearly defines all Islamic commands. Thus, the four rules also are four general ways to understand the seven points of the Islamic Society. -5- The fifth point of the seven points of the Islamic Society is that "In the Islamic Society, there has to be the recitation of the name of Allah". This point will manifest itself on the level of Ehsan and here the recitation means TASBEEH & WAZEEFAY of the name of Allah and besides this recitation, the 5 pillars of Islam are also included in this point. The point must be cared for by the people themselves without any force of law. About Tasbeeh & Wazeefay, Ulema should be consulted. -6- The sixth point is that "In the Islamic Society, there has to be an observation of the Islamic limits in music & photography and not only this but the Hijab of the Women also has to be practiced". This point too will come into action on the level of Ehsan though Adal may be taken into account when & where aberration regarding these matters seems to be collective. About Music, there are three conditions to be fulfilled. The first is that the words of the song must not be un-Islamic, second is that men do not hear women singing and likewise, women do not hear men singing and the third is that the person/s enjoying music by singing should not be professional singers but only take music, singing & dancing as a form of relaxation. There is no harm in the dancing of men in a gathering where women may also be present in Hijab without singing as Muhammad PBUH allowed Bibi Ayesha to see black men dancing from behind his shoulders without any criticism. Photography also has its limit in the Islamic Society as Islam does not allow taking or making pictures of living beings at all except where that is utmost necessary. Mind it that the use of any item in such a way that shamelessness in the Islamic sense finds a free hand makes that item liable to ban according to the Islamic teachings (due to SADD-e-ZARAI, closing of means leading to wrong) for which verses of the Holy Quran and also Ahadees are present. It is an important point to note that Islam is very strict in the matters of HAYA (Shame) and this strictness is the reason behind the command of HIJAB indeed. Therefore, in this society, TV. will be used in a direct manner in the zones of Saturn and this means there will be a live transmission of TV. programs. Let us now take HIJAB. Hijab must be observed in an Islamic Society though on the level of EHSAN. The zones of Saturn will be for men & women separately so that the demands of putting music & photography in use and the requirements of Hijab may be totally fulfilled. Women must not leave their homes with make-up & fashions and take a Chadar hiding their hair and themselves totally. These two points if considered (one negative that no make-up should be done while facing Na-Mehrum persons and the other positive that a Chadar must be taken when a woman leaves her home for some necessary work, which may hide all the body except for face, hands and feet) then there would not be much left to ask from a Muslim woman. Mind it that women may leave their homes only due to some necessity and though they have the right to judge their own necessities, Islamic teachings must be seen at such occasions. Men having enough resources, should marry more than one woman as Islam allows keeping in marriage four women at one time for the Muslim men. They must not worry about the gossip such attitude may cause as we Muslims must care about the word of Allah and not the words of people when it falls against it. I am sure this will put an end to many social problems which Muslim women are facing in today's world. Hijab should be felt in the society by the setting of traditions and for this we must ask humbly the Muslim women to set traditions and fulfill them by asking attention of each other towards those. No force at all but with good faith, sacrifice and tolerance. -7- The seventh point is that "In the Islamic Society, the three high qualities of human nature have to be present (1) Good Faith among each other (2) Sacrifice (3) Tolerance". By good faith, I mean that Muslims keep an attitude of believing each other and must give the impression that they really are brothers. By sacrifice, I mean that worldly things should not be cared for much and everybody must see to his duties first before asking for his rights. Sacrifice does not mean that one must leave one's principles (the principles of Islam) in the name of sacrifice but it is only made for the Islamic principles. Indeed, one must always feel a satisfaction whenever one remembers one's sacrifice. By tolerance, I mean that we must always keep away from narrow-mindedness and must hear all sides of an argument with patience. Mind it that Islam allows taking a strict attitude at times for punishment (SAKHTI) but does not allow implicating torture for punishment (TASHADDUD) at any time or place and the difference must be kept in view. May Allah grant Muslims the ability to fulfill the demands of Islam. Amen. Let us now see the 5 channels in which Islamic way of life must be felt clearly & collectively. The 5 channels of life in which the Islamic administration manifests itself are Martial Aspect, Education, Economic Aspect, Cultural Aspect and Justice. Regarding Martial Aspect, I would comment that the set up of Army in today's world may be accepted with a little touch in the Islamic sense here and there. Faith upon Islam must be considered the basic weapon of JAWANS. Education will be given privately & publicly and every course of education will only be for 3 years in total. Nobody will be educated before 6 years and before that education at home will be considered enough in the Society. The educational time will be 3 hours daily and there will be no education after sunset. As Guidance towards the truth is a duty upon the rulers therefore the official course would be one in the whole country and easy to get though other set-ups of education may be accepted. In the first year, the education of some languages specially the national language and Arabic will be taught. Also basic Mathematics will also be taught and in the second year AHADEES will be studied. In the third year, while the work done previously of the first two years will be revised, the work of the great Muslim Scholars regarding the Holy Book Quran will be fully studied. To get educated is a matter of one's liking and also there should be no beating in regards to education, for this attitude is in itself an illiteracy. Mosques & Libraries must remain great sources of learning but much detail in this brief writing is not possible. Cultural Aspect is responsible to keep the Islamic effect on the society and to keep the modern equipments in accordance with the detail mentioned in the third point in a limit. There will be no restriction on writing or lecturing but the open opposition of the Islamic Teachings will not be tolerated and even then a touch of Ehsan may be present in responding to such situations. The newspaper and magazines can immediately report anything, keeping away from photos of living creatures. The people in-charge for the edit of the papers and magazines must be well versed in the Islamic Law. Here, there would be an inclination towards liberty but every individual must see for himself the Islamic restrictions. About Justice, I would write in points. Our present society is experiencing total lack of the feelings of respect towards fellow beings so keep these in view. The first thing is that "In Hudood and Qisas & Diyat, the benefit of doubt will be given to the accused" (Please note that five big sins come under the heading of Hudood; Burglary, Dacoity, Adultery, to accuse someone wrongly of adultery and drinking of wine. In Qisas & Diyat comes murder and/or wounding someone). The second thing is that "the testimony of women & children will not be accepted in these cases (though in a case of rape, the victim's words may be given weight indeed)". The third thing is that "Emphasis will be given on proving someone a criminal rather than on defense". The fourth thing is that "when crimes of Hudood and Qisas & Diyat are proven then the fixed punishments which Islam has ordered to give about them will be given". The fifth thing is that "In every administrative zone, the police quarter will be made so that they keep the zone clear of all criminal activity". The sixth thing is that "no one will be given any special privilege once found guilty, though in crimes other than Hudood and Qisas & Diyat, a person's pious nature should be taken into account". The seventh thing is that "Women and children will not be given any punishment of Jails and in fact, even men can only be jailed for four months and not more than that, which will be for crimes other than Hudood, Qisas & Diyat". The eighth thing is that "Justice will be done immediately and the enforcement of the verdict will be fast". Let us now take the Economic Aspect. Note that the possession of worldly things is a trust and actually everything belongs to Allah. Worldly life is an examination so Islam orders to see the benefits of the life after this one even in the matters regarding the economic aspect. When business and profit-making is based on high qualities of Human nature, there can be no fear of anybody not getting the basic necessities. Poverty is not a bad thing that we should talk about eliminating it but bad is that a person does not achieve even the basic needs of life, whether physical or spiritual. The sufficiency of basic needs must be seen for everyone living in an Islamic Society. The Islamic way of economics does not talk about finishing the individual possession, nor does it take a man as so much at liberty that he may do whatever he considers best with his money, for such liberty according to Islam is a total slavery of desires. The truth is this that all men and women are slaves of Allah and this slavery has the love of the True Lord Allah at its base. Note that there is no clash of Capital and Labor from the Islamic viewpoint. Let us study the Economics side by points which may clarify its position in the Islamic Society. (1) For all Business, paper work will be as little as possible. (2) The timings of offices will be from 8 in the morning till 1:30 in the afternoon. (3) The Business-men can go on with their works till Asar. Factory owners can be given a special privilege in this regard. (4) The womens' zones of saturn can be utilized for economic stability of women. For example, shops and stores can be made where women can shop & buy among themselves and the goods will be supplied by Bait-ul-Mal (the Treasury). Women will keep accounts themselves. If these goods are made in these very zones, again a way of stabilizing economic position of women can be achieved. Then women can also bring refreshments to distribute so as to make things easy for the less privileged among the women. (5) In Business profit, big or small, the sixth part will be for Bait-ul-Mal (i.e. 1000 on 6000 Rupee profit and likewise). Business men will take out the sum of their profits themselves. Remember that the seventh point asks for good faith among each other. (6) Qarz-e-Hasana will be made common. That means that privileged will forward some money as loan to poor people of the society with this statement that if you achieve enough money in life and feel at ease, you may return this loan. If you do not achieve such a situation in all your life, this loan is forgiven. (7) There will be no need for Licenses for any correct business and all business performed with non-Muslims must remain in cash dealings. (8) There will be no tax for water and even in agricultural land. A common man must feel free of unnecessary burden and only electric bills may be a source of worry if any. He should always feel at ease in the Islamic society so that he can fulfill his duties according to Islam with a relaxed mind. (9) Bait-ul-Mal will have a significant place in the economic setting of the country. (10) Zakat & Ushr will be given periodically. MUHAMMAD SALEEM DADA E-mail : saleemdada@yahoo.com

My Message Islam is the greatest Truth in the whole universe. We must try to have a great knowledge of it, have total faith in it and put it into our full practice as Muslims.

Islam, the collection of commands given to men by Allah and path set for salvation from the times of Adam, is today the only religion which survives. This may sound totally amazing but it is a fact which I have stated plainly. All the other religious teachings have been completely neglected by those who claim to be their followers and in fact, the reason Islam has survived through such trying times as the last century, is that it is not only a religion but a complete code of life demanding from the believers to adhere to its teachings in all walks of life. On the basis of this truth, the fact becomes very clear that whenever & wherever Muslims lost their battles or had a significant fall, that was much due to their approach to Islam as only a religion and not as a complete code of life. This reality can be understood better by studying the fall of Muslims in Spain and the setback they incurred in India in the previous century. By their attitude, it seems that they do not have the recognition of the severe mistake they had committed at these occasions (and at the advent of Chengez Khan many centuries ago, and Communism and Kamal Pasha in this very century, for that matter) because they are gradually leading themselves to the same position except for some, and this means that they are again going for a fall. In this writing, I intend to put forward the fact that how beautifully the happenings in the world point out the truth of Islamic teachings. This may guide Muslims to understand the beauty and the power of the Faith they have, making them go for its true application in each and every field of life. Let us first take the matter of distortion of the right concepts in many fields by the non-Muslims. The first thing I want to comment about is the concept of history which many non-Muslims believe in and profess. They say that it is some kind of conflict between opposite forces (and they are correct uptil this point), the successful part of which gives birth to its own opposition from itself and they again have a conflict for the sake of development (here they deviate from the truth i.e. the Islamic viewpoint). Islamic teachings about history is that it is in fact a fight between good & evil in a very disciplined manner - Note that Islam specifies the opposite forces - in which the good always came out as the winner. Please note that the Right always is and has been the same i.e. the word of Allah while the wrong took many colors and faces to fight it with Satan Iblees at its head, always losing the game whenever and wherever they clashed. A little more about this can be had through my Urdu writing FARASAT-e-ISLAM (the wisdom of Islam), if desired. Mark the difference between the concepts that the view held by the non-Muslims commences by a correct statement by the Islamic terms, deviating towards the wrong just as Iblees deviated from the right towards the wrong. This attitude is totally present in many of the views and concepts which the non-Muslims today hold. Keeping the discussion on the same topic, let us see two different views these people hold in regards to the place of man in the world, both totally wrong indeed. The first one is what the Christians believe in i.e. they consider that men and women are being punished because of the disobedience of Adam & Eve (as they ate the prohibited fruit) and only because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ (Salam on the great man & messenger), have been saved. Here again, we find that this is a fact that Adam, Salam on him, and Eve, Salam on her, did eat the prohibited fruit but they asked for mercy which was granted to them and the world then became a place of examination for men & women and not a place of punishment. Mark the difference between the angles of view for a specific event. This is also a point to note that Islam clarifies that the great man Jesus Christ was never crucified. See my book MUSAWAT KA ISLAMI TASAWWUR for a few more tips about this. The second view among the non-Muslims about the man's place is totally satanic. It argues that man has achieved his present form through evolution coming into one form from another and takes this as a necessary process for survival. Again, there is a distortion as it is not the survival of the fittest in the physical sense but it is in the moral sense as Islam takes it for that is how the Holy Quran has indicated. The truth is that the Human Beings by their creation have an affinity with each other indeed as the plants resemble each other and as animals have resemblance with each other. To try to prove the changing of form from one kind of genus to another is a foolishness indeed though changes may have occurred inside a family of animals like cat family or dog family i.e. another species may have arisen from one but genus (the family) is totally stable by all considerations as that only is according to the natural & fundamental law of life by the Islamic viewpoint. Mark that the moral fitness is changed to physical sense and affinity in one kind of creation is replaced by resemblance in all kinds just to put an argument for a foolish idea. Let us further see the distortion in the concept of democracy these people profess. In democracy, the assembly which runs the administration in a country comes into being by the votes of the people of that country. This is quite right that the administration must be based on the advice of the people by the Islamic view but it is the weight which Islam asks for and not the count of votes. This statement can be understood better by my book ISLAMI FAISLA, which elaborates the Islamic system in regards to administration giving a complete picture of the Islamic society. Here we find a replacement, rather a distortion again that though the rule among the people must be based on the advice of the people, yet it is the weight which is to be considered and not the count of heads. With a statement based on knowledge, these people go on to apply it in totally wrong ways completely disregarding all demands of Wisdom and this type of attitude is present in all their concepts which you will easily detect if you ponder, keeping Islamic teachings in view. For my argument, I consider these examples quite enough. I intended to guide your kind attention towards the fact that even for a wrong attitude, a right base is necessary as the inner self of man does not apply itself to any kind of wrong at all. This understood, let me tell you that this is an Islamic concept that every person has been born with a sense of Truth (i.e. born on FITRAT - study Islam for detail) and so as a person goes on putting the right concept in front, the time comes when the inner self answers. The non-Muslims are deceiving their inner selves by distortion of what is right and this attitude can be checked and avoided through a higher understanding and its true application by Wisdom. This will make the mistake of the non-Muslims come in open and the difference of right & wrong, which is as thin as a hair, will be known totally. This will also for everybody lead towards Islam through observation. The second thing is the command of Hijab, which can be observed in the creation around us, only concentration upon the point is desired. From the ancient times, Moon is taken to be a symbol of beauty which is at its total beautiful form in the middle of the Lunar month. The fact to note is that it rises in the night at this occasion to convey the message that all beauty must be hidden. As the people sleep, it goes on to achieve its peak. Such also is the matter of stars that they only manifest themselves in darkness when everybody has retired from activity. Venus, the beautiful morning star and at many occasions the beautiful evening star, can only be 48 degree apart from the Sun as seen from Earth as if conveying the message that the beauty has its limit to which it must see to, without fail. Pearls are only to be found in shells in the deep waters while another beautiful ornament diamond can only be had by breaking into the depths of Earth. This is how Islam the natural religion teaches that Beauty has its limits which must be observed. Photograph is not allowed of living creatures in any way and making or taking pictures of living creatures is totally prohibited. Entertainment by music can only be had keeping 3 conditions in view as is clarified in the ISLAMI FAISLA. And indeed women must observe Hijab, a natural tendency for all beautiful things, as they themselves are symbols of beauty and charm and they are ordered by Allah to have some necessary reservations. Let us make the phenomenon common so that all must care for the limits for beauty and so that True Muslims feel more attraction towards Islam through observation. The third thing which I would like to comment upon is the amazing accuracy in which the last messenger of Allah, Hazrat Muhammad P.B.U.H., foretold the events near QAYAMAT. If you read AHADEES in relation to this matter, you will understand more about what I mean. Everything is going on in a perfect order and though we all must believe the great man and messenger with blind faith yet this observation makes the belief more powerful indeed. There is a sequence in which events are taking place and in fact, I find patches in the recent history where the clash of Good & Evil achieves height and the most remarkable patches in this century are the troublesome war, end of Khilafat by Kamal Pasha who was a symbol of dictatorship & secularism, rise of Communism and the rise of Fascism, Tehreek-e-Khilafat, silent movies, women coming out of homes for jobs (1914 - 1924), all happening in a short time. Another patch is where we find the end of Fascism, another troublesome great war, U.N.O., very deadly weapons made, industrialization of motion pictures, Communism gaining some power, political power shifting, women coming to disregard their respectable position and in the midst of darkness, a ray of light and hope, a country taking shape for the rise of Muslims as a great nation i.e. Pakistan (the decade of 40's). The third important patch is the present time where we find the end of Communism, Muslims leaving indifference & hypocrisy as most people are taking with all heart to Islam while there are many such persons too in them who are openly opposing Islam, a troublesome war again, a chance taking form for an Islamic society to come in existence, change of political power and even trends of politics, amazing ways to deal with physical problems, spread of V.C.R., the world becoming small in the sense that there is an amazingly effective system of communication (via satellites) and totally fascinating means of conveyance, computers being applied in many different ways with a few programs being most wonderful and a great help to knowledge, the development of tolerance and the desire taking place among nations to have an understanding and relationship with each other (beginning from 1987 and will probably last till the last of this century). This period in my opinion is most crucial and in regards to the application of HIJAB, quite trying for the Muslims for we are at a make or a break pattern to which we must answer immediately & forcefully. The sequence in the events of history is very evident and even the patches can be detected here and there but the patches in this very century as I have mentioned are very striking indeed. Let us ourselves concentrate on this point and ask others too for attention as this may empower all to answer strongly to this occasion guiding us more towards Islam through observation. A very interesting thing to note is that in the first patch of this century, a drama took place in Muharram the first hijri month in our calendar; the actors were Russians and totally unaware that they are making a play. That was Nov. 7, 1917, when the Hijri month Muharram was in progress. The man dethroned was born in Muharram (though Czar Nicholas was dethroned in March, yet this in actual was the turning point for him) and the main leader of the coup was also born in Muharram (yes, Lenin was born in Muharram). The main leader who assigned to Communism a specific nature and ruled that place for nearly 30 years, was also born in Muharram. After Stalin, this satanic system was on the decline and though it was Safar, the second Hijri month, when it collapsed completely (Aug. 21, 1991), the plan for this evil system which failed may have been made in Muharram. This month seems to have an affinity with injustice and just recently we had a ruler who talked about Islam much but only took steps which were more of a show, neglecting the essence of Islam. He was born in Muharram and died in Muharram but indeed his total support for JIHAD-e-AFGHANISTAN is something which really is an amazingly great credit for him and which may even wash his wrong-doings. We must always remember that there are many influences operating in this world around us and therefore nobody must be judged byonly one influence as this in itself would be injustice. Everybody in truth must be judged on the basis of Islam and no other. Keeping the same topic, let us see another Hijri month which is unlike Muharram, of a great Islamic value and asks for development of high morality. Even an ordinary Muslim knows well that Ramazan is a very holy month and indeed a chosen month by Allah. All of the Holy Books have been sent in the world in this month by Allah and the fight of BADAR the battle marking the Truth took place in this month. The conquest of Mecca was had in this great month and indeed in this very month, the decisions of Allah are conveyed to angels for the coming year so that they may fulfill their duties accordingly. ROZA is practiced in this month and a very special attention is achieved regarding all good practice. A very important thing is that Ramazan is again manifesting itself as a very holy & sacred month in regards to the events which have and are taking place in this century. The most striking thing is that Pakistan came into being in Ramazan in the 40's, the second patch. This must also be remembered that Islam was introduced here by Muhammad Bin Qasim in Ramazan the date being 10th (I often feel pleased as I remember that I was born in Ramazan on this very date i.e. at the Taraveeh time of the 10th Roza which is a great blessing by Allah upon my humble self and it was the time when by lunar basis, the day was Saturday while by the Solar basis, it was Friday as the midnight was still a couple of hours away so this is again a blessing of Allah as these are the only 2 days mentioned by name in the Holy Book in a Holy Sense. The word "SALEEM" i.e. PURE has come twice in Quran to explain the quality of the heart of the great man & messenger Abraham at both places i.e. SIPARA 19 & 23, a blessing indeed) & therefore it seems that Islam is specially related to this piece of land without any doubt. The special features about Muharrum and Ramazan presented here can also be seen in my Urdu book Farasat-e-Islam, which was written & published in 1987. Pakistan has achieved some very important success in Ramazan but here detail is neither desired nor possible. We must guide attention towards the special features regarding Muharrum and regarding Ramazan so that people interested in natural matters may be guided towards Islam through observation. The fifth thing to note in this discussion is the amazing similarity between languages. The Holy Quran has pointed out that all languages spring from a basic speech, taught by Allah (see any good Tafseer of the first few verses of Sura Rahman). Not long ago, I read about a report of how the words having a certain meaning of many languages resemble each other and thus indicating that all languages in actual have one root. MUFASSIREEN (persons who have through their vast Islamic knowledge wrote comments on the verses of the Holy Quran for Its better understanding) have suggested this many centuries before. There are quite a few things taken as discoveriesleading to some opening in the knowledge of the study of man, mostly in the field of Psychology due to its affinity with the spiritual side of man, which have been put forward by Muslims many centuries before in true nature. Muslims have much contributed to the knowledge of Medicine and Astronomy too and in fact these 3 subjects must be studied by Muslims deeply today and their commands regarding moral side must be clarified in these times as the Holy Quran points out that by the study of AAFAQ (universe) and ANFUS (self)) non-Muslims will be convinced of the Holy Quran being the Truth particularly about QAYAMAT (See Sura HA MEEM AS-SAJDA-53) and therefore concentration on these 3 subjects will indeed pave way for the non-Muslims to respect Islam, if not accept it fully. However, concentration must only be through the power of observation and laboratory experiments must totally be avoided as much of the wrong has been committed through lab. in these 3 fields of knowledge by the Islamic viewpoint. The trouble with the non-Muslims is that they first have a distorted idea about something as I indicated before, and then they take it as something new to follow with the result that it leads them to fire. Although, I feel sorry for them yet when I see Muslims who have a complete code of life and then get dazzled by the philosophies of the West, which does have people of intelligence where material & physical matters are concerned but is totally wanting where spiritual things come into consideration, I really feel an ache for the Muslims much more. This folly suggests an inferiority complex on the part of the Muslims and also is a barrier for them to understand the truth about any matter regarding the mentioned 3 subjects. Muslims must shake off all kinds of inferiority complex and must care about the concepts of Islam in all walks of life so as to achieve the glory they have lost and so as to teach the world and not be taught. This must be understood well that Muslims are facing these trying times since a century and its not much time in the life of mankind. We must work hard for the job to be done well. The Word of Allah will surely reign manifesting itself totally but only He knows how, when and by whom. We must give our best at this trying time as the good deeds done at this time will indeed bear great fruits in AKHIRAT. May Allah bless all Muslims & guide them to glory. AMEN MUHAMMAD SALEEM DADA A-8 NOMEE ARCADE (JM 683) FATIMA JINAH COLONY JAMSHED ROAD NO. 3 KARACHI E-mail: saleemdada@yahoo.com

AL-ISLAM FACE TO FACE Today, Islam is facing an opposition from among the Muslims themselves i.e. through the lives they are leading and in other words, Islam is face to face with hypocrisy. In this essay which is mostly the translation of Al-Islam (one of my essays written in my book ISLAMI FAISLA which I wrote and published in 1987), and of the views expressed in FARASAT-e-ISLAM (My another book which was also written in 1987 and published in December the same year), I have tried to convey the message of Islam only as an ordinary Muslim in such a way that they can be understood easily and when known properly, can work on the attitude of the people changing them for the better. I would appreciate if you would read my 3 urdu books too with this essay, 2 of which I have just named and the third one is MUSAWAT KA ISLAMI TASSAWWUR which was first published in 1983. Also available in a written form is my essay like this one by the name of THE ISLAMIC MANIFESTO which is also included in this text. Please note that I have no intention to insult any individual or any concern but only want to convey the message of Islam so that its teachings can clearly be known. ISLAM is a very powerful code of life as its commands, which are given by ALLAH, complement each other. Indeed, this true path is set by Allah Himself. To know these commands, there are 3 sources (1) The Holy Quran (2) Traditions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad P.B.U.H. (3) Consensus (IJMA). The fourth source is said to be IJTEHAD (this term means an Islamic Decision which takes place when a true Muslim exercises his power of making decisions through a high degree of knowledge of Islam in a matter which is not clearly defined in KITAB i.e. the HOLY QURAN and/or SUNNAT i.e. the TRADITIONS of the HOLY PROPHET) but it is not necessary for all Muslims to accept one IJTEHAD on a certain matter. Details ahead. Let us understand clearly that the true aim of life is that a person must worship ALLAH only as is said "I have created JINN & INSAN only so that they worship Me" (Sura ZARIAAT-56). When the aim of life is only this then this must be kept in view at every place and at every time. Islam is not only a religion that a person can call himself a true Muslim if he happens to fulfill some rites of Islam. Our Holy Book Quran says "Only Islam is the true path in the eyes of Allah" (Sura AAL-E-IMRAN - 19). That means to neglect Islam in any matter relating to life, degrades the value of a person in front of ALLAH. Islam is clearly stated as more than a religion in the Holy Book Quran and to obey its commands regarding all fields of life is a necessity for a true Muslim. It is said that "To issue Commands is only for ALLAH" (Sura Yousuf - 40) and these commands are known from the Holy Quran (KITAB) and traditions of MUHAMMAD P.B.U.H. (SUNNAT). The qualities of these Commands and power and emphasis on each is known by IJMA, the third source. Outside these 3, there is no value of anything said, in the view of Islam. It is said in the Holy Book Quran that "whoever obeyed the Prophet, obeyed ALLAH and who did not, then we have not made you their Guardian (Sura NISA - 80). There are many other Ayaat too for this Islamic point. Also the respect of IJMA is clearly stated "And whoever opposes the Holy Prophet when the true Guidance is known to him and takes another route than what is of Muslims, We will let him go where he goes and We will enter him in JAHANNUM, very bad place to enter" (SURA NISA - 115). Now, whoever wants to learn Islam, will certainly try to know ARABIC uptil at least that extent where he or she may easily understand the Holy Book Quran without any translation. There are great number of books and indeed great books written, for understanding of the Holy Quran & Ahadees, but there often rises confusion about IJMA & IJTEHAD and I will try here to clarify these 2 briefly so that the Islamic teachings can clearly be understood. IJMA, in brief, means the decision of all Muslims united about a matter or a situation. This meaning is derived from the Ayat I have just quoted i.e. Sura Nisa - 115. Now, this meaning opens the question whether such a decision ever came into existence or not. Let me clearly state here that IJMA can take place by the consensus of the scholars of Islam on a certain matter and IJMA does not give any command but it clarifies & explains the commands of Islam. It is related to the defining of the qualities of the Islamic Commands so that these may remain clear and Muslims may easily practice Islam. It shows what commands are the principles of Islam and what are the branches of those principles. It clearly denotes on what commands, Muslims have to believe with all heart without any question (and such commands are the "ESSENTIAL FEATURES OF ISLAM") and on what, they may exercise their choice uptil a certain extent taking one of a few things acceptable to Islam regarding a matter. Also, it clarifies whether a command is to be obeyed individually or has to be fulfilled collectively. Then, this also is denoted through IJMA that if a command is to be taken collectively, whether it can be observed by an individual on behalf of a collection of Muslims or whether each & everybody has to see to it to fulfill its demands. All this defining of the qualities and the position of Islamic Commands is the field of IJMA. Here, I would take the opportunity to point out some matters about the Essential Features of Islam. All the principles are certainly included in this term but not only these principles, all the features relating to these principles in such a way that after leaving them, it is impossible to understand these principles or to practice them, are included in this term indeed. For example, to believe and observe SALAT (Namaz) is necessary then all the detail about Namaz given in Ahadees must be taken into account for that is equally necessary as after leaving this detail there is no way of observing this principle. This goes for SAUM (Roza), ZAKAT, HAJJ etc. too that their true explanation must be had from Ahadees (SUNNAT; these both terms are interrelated as Sunnat is the deeds of the Holy Prophet Muhammad P.B.U.H. And Ahadees is the narration of Sunnat) and must be observed accordingly. The Holy Book Quran gives all principles of Islam indeed for it is a complete code of life but whoever considers taking Guidance from the Holy Quran only, leaving the last Prophet Muhammad PBUH certainly will lose the true path as the terms Quran uses to give the commands of Allah, can never be understood correctly by such attitude. Whereas the Holy Book Quran clearly defines Islam completely in theory for all times and all places, the person of Muhammad PBUH clearly defines Islam completely in practice for all times and all places for this great man & messenger of Allah was the last Prophet and it was announced in the Holy Book Quran by Allah near the close of his worldly life, that the Islamic Commands have been given in the Book Quran totally and thus Islam has been defined completely in theory & practice to the world to know, believe & practice. This is a point to note and that is why Islam is based on Kitab & Sunnat and the qualities and details of the Commands received are known by the Consensus (commonly known as IJMA-e-UMMAT or simply IJMA). None of these 3 must be neglected, if Islam is clearly to be understood. IJMA is also stated in Ahadees. There is a Hadees that the Holy Prophet said "Allah will not collect my Ummat on anything wrong, He puts His Hand on a guided group of people. Whoever leaves the guided group, he goes into the Fire" (TIRMAZI, one of the six important and authentic books of AHADEES). The same book reports that the Holy Prophet PBUH said that "When even two men from you Muslims recommend (or show appreciation for) a deceased person, then JANNAT surely is clear for him as you are the witnesses of Allah on earth". By this, it can be understood how powerful that word would be upon which all the Muslims are united. However, Mind it please, that IJMA does not give commands but defines them only. After IJMA, let us consider IJTEHAD. It must be noted here that this is a matter of "Subject & Object" as Islam indicates. There are some matters in which this Subject & Object works in such a way that once this is understood, those matters become exceptionally clear. See SHAFA,AT (i.e. Recommendation of somebody for Jannat at the JUDGMENT DAY) for instance, that everybody who will be given the right to make SHAFA'AT will have a high standing in view of Islam such as Hafiz, Aalim, Shaheed etc. Such people only will have this right of Shafa'at and moreover, they can use it only for the faithful people who led themselves to JAHANNUM by their wrong deeds and not because of their faith, for that must be correct. Here, we find the rule of Subject & Object clearly applying as the permission of Shafa'at by Allah will only be granted to the Muslims of high standing and its benefits will only be to those sinners who never lost their True Faith. The matter of dreams is also like this that the more truthful among people gets more true dreams than the others. Ahadees of Tirmazi and other authentic books of Ahadees prove this application of the rule clearly and the related chapters may be seen for detail. Here, I took up this rule of Subject & Object as it also applies in the matter of IJTEHAD. The rule of Subject & Object must be observed here as it is necessary for a Muslim (Subject) to be on a high degree of the knowledge of Islam for IJTEHAD and the power of IJTEHAD can only be exercised in those matters (Object) which are not definitely stated in Kitab and/or Sunnat. TIRMAZI reports that when Mu'az Bin Jabal were going to Yemen as Hakim the Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH asked how will you judge (make decisions). He replied "By the book of Allah". The holy Prophet PBUH asked "how will you judge, if you don't find the concerned matter there". He replied "then by the traditions of Muhammad PBUH". The Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH again asked "And if you don't find it there". He replied "then I will judge by Ijtehad (by my own understanding)". Upon this, the Holy Prophet praised Allah and showed his appreciation for what Mu'az has said. Here then, is the rule clearly put and it should be observed in Ijtehad. If a question is to be answered by Ijtehad then it should be open to debate in view of Islam. Please note that Ijtehad also like Ijma defines the commands of Allah as it is completely based on Kitab & Sunnat because total Islamic Commands are present in theory & practice in Kitab & Sunnat. The difference between Ijtehad & Ijma is that Ijma has to be accepted by all Muslims, for leaving any matter based on Ijma or not giving it the rightful place it has, puts an unfavorable mark on Faith according to the power of that Ijma, while for Ijtehad Muslims have a choice to accept it or leave it, after considering it & weighing it as it is based with an understanding that MOST PROBABLY, this is the right attitude to take in a given matter or a given situation in view of Islam. However, this must be noted well that in a matter where some Ijtehad must be taken immediately for practical purpose, Muslims must take a stance and not leave the matter open to debate for long as this may cause a lot of unnecessary complications and much undue hardship for the Muslim people. By our foolishness of this type, Islam is face to face with hypocrisy. We all, excluding no one at all, are responsible for this troublesome situation. Let us try to eliminate the evil now which has occurred by our delay and work for the good so much as to let a true Islamic Society come into being by our words and our deeds (May Allah grant us His Mercy and gives us the power to enlighten the whole world by His permission AMEN). Here, I will state the events which took place at the creation of ADAM (Salam on him) as narrated by the Holy Quran as this will shed a clear light on many matters by the Islamic viewpoint for us to see & understand. Sura Baqara, Sura Aaraf and Sura Hijr narrate this event that when Allah created Adam (Salam on him) He ordered the angels to give regards to him and to prostrate in front of him. Now, angels never disobey Allah and they do whatever He orders, so they fell to fulfill the order given. There was a Jinn among them who is called IBLEES who did not obey this order. He was allowed to be in angels due to his obedience and worship of Allah but at this time, when with angels he also got included in the command, he got in pride and refused to obey. Allah asked him why didn't he obey (Note that Allah gave him a chance so that he may ask for mercy & obey). In reply, Iblees said I am better for you created me by fire and him, you created by mud. This was the reason he forwarded and refused to obey. On this answer, Allah finished all the effect of his obedience and canceled the permission given to him to stay in the angels. Allah put his verdict on him for JAHANNUM and hearing that verdict, Iblees got very angry and finding himself totally incapable of challenging Allah, the True Lord, he turned his anger towards Adam (the cause for his insult there) and for his degraded position for which he himself was to be blamed became a total enemy of men. He asked for extension in time of his life that it may become a very very long one so that he can misguide the people and make them also get the same verdict which was given for him. Allah gave him the extension but also told him that those who take My shelter for safety, you will not be able to misguide them. Whoever takes your way, they will all go with you in Jahannum. After this, Allah gave Adam, Salam on him, Bibi Hawa (EVE) and put them both into Jannat. They were allowed to live there as they wish and eat & drink whatever they like but a certain fruit of a tree was not allowed for them and that is why they were not even allowed to go near it. Satan i.e. Iblees, somehow entered the place and he with his power of speech persuaded them to eat the prohibited fruit. They fell for his talk and ate the fruit. At this, Allah addressed them that why did you eat it when you were ordered not to do so, only because of what argument Satan put forward to misguide you while you were clearly warned that he was your open enemy. Adam & Eve both asked for His mercy and asked for His Blessing. Allah granted His mercy to them and said My blessing can only be had when you pass an examination. You must have a true belief and the right deeds according to that belief. That is how you can get your dwelling place JANNAT again. You all must be obedient to Me and must take care that Iblees will be your open enemy. So this is how Adam & Eve came to earth and this is how the life of human being began. The idea of Evolution is totally against the Truth and known history of man does not support it in any way while the history of man as recorded clearly conforms this event of creation of man in very clear terms. The clash of good & evil has been taking place in all the history of mankind in which the good always came out as the winner and Iblees who presented the evil in many different colors, always lost the game. Today, it seems that he is near to having things his way but in truth, the game is heading towards a complete win for the good and a complete loss for the evil as the clash has achieved an international character. Let us now view some of the salient features of this event of creation, to understand LIFE in accordance with Islam. The first thing to note is that "The beginning of the man's life was in the light of knowledge and not in the darkness of illiteracy". This is a point to note that Allah is our True Lord who helps us in every difficulty when our attention is only at HIM and the total light of Guidance is from HIM indeed. The second thing to note is that "Every man & woman is going through an examination in which he or she has to fulfill the duties laid for him or her according to Islam, to get back the true living place of the human beings i.e. JANNAT. If they fail to be obedient to Allah, like satan Iblees they will be in the fire". The third thing to note is that "The difference between the human being and satan is not that one does not make mistake and the other does but in fact, the difference lies in the fact that INSAN (the human being) accepts where he is wrong and satan(the devil) does not, even when his mistake is clearly indicated to him so that it becomes quite obvious. He rather defends himself at such occasions". The fourth thing to note is that "Satan asked for a very long life to mislead the people. From this it is understood that to influence people, it is necessary to have the permission by Allah. The devil asked permission to mislead people but this is also clearly understood by the Holy Quran that His permission is necessary also for guiding the people towards the Truth (See Sura AAL-e-IMRAN - 152, Sura IBRAHIM - 01, SURA ASH-SHURA - 51)". Note here that Satan can encourage to cause evil but he can not force a person to commit any wrong. He does not have the power to make a person accept or reject something by force though he does have a persuading ability. Everybody must see to his own to save himself/herself from evil but always with a complete faith in Allah, the True Lord, as this is the only way to remain safe from evil. The fifth thing is that "There must be hope towards Allah and a person must not lose hope or feel such a depression that prevents him/her from asking the mercy of Allah as the loss of hope will cause losing of the right way indeed as no person is immune from sins, light or heavy". The sixth and last of these points to note (and there are many others too, if a person really ponders over this subject) that "It seems that Satanic arguments had some weight that he was created by fire and man by mud so why should he bow to a lower creature. But, his argument was completely based on a great misunderstanding. Surely, a higher being should not bow to a lower creature but Allah had created the Man better than him. Allah had blown a high Spirit in Adam & had given him a great knowledge & had placed him in a position of enforcing his Law so now there was no way to disobey for Iblees but he only saw the physical things and totally disregarded the spiritual side. It is not at all possible for a person to get to the Truth, neglecting the spiritual traits totally. Today, the Western world due to this very mistake of neglecting the spiritual side (and keep aside the psychic study for it is only observation through which they consider getting at the bottom of the psychic matters and that also is a form of giving weight to the physical side), has got into a life where a confusing glamour clearly denotes that they seem to have forgotten totally that there is a true life after this one of examination. Men have forgotten their commanding position there and women have disregarded their duties at home; both degrading themselves uptil an extent where only a great sacrifice can return them their true peace of mind (and piece of mind also, as personally I do not consider invention of scientific commodities as a sign of intelligence but surely the neglect of one's place is a great foolishness). The true understanding can only come by giving value to both ZAAHIR (the physical side) and BAATIN (the spiritual side) as to leave any one causes wrong assessment of any matter relating to man. Muslims must always keep this in view as this point needs attention. I would take the opportunity to write something about Jinn here. These are such creatures of Allah who are created from fire mainly as man has been created from mud mainly. There are good and bad in them just like human beings and they possess the physical strength much more than human beings. They have the power to keep hidden from people even when they are among them. They can see the people being hidden and the Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH used to ask Allah to guard him from all evil whenever he went to the toilet. Jinn do not attack men even when they are much stronger as angels are guarding the people by the order of Allah who are more powerful even in physical strength than Jinn and moreover, men are given much more spiritual power than Jinn indeed. Sometimes, the guard is put away for someone and at such occasions if the spiritual power of the person concerned fails to meet the challenge, some satan i.e. a troublesome JINN does get a chance to make mischief for him and sometimes even to get hold of him. Men, when they try to attack JINN put touse spiritual power and apply special words and specific terms known to cause effect on Jinn repetitively so that they may come under their control though attack from Jinn on men and the attack of men on Jinn both is totally against Islam. Solomon, Salam on him, was allowed as an exception to enslave Jinn and make them work for him and this must not be cited for attacking Jinn as the Hadees clarify that to control Jinn is not allowed. Like the event of creation of man, Sura Namal - Ayat 39 & 40 also clearly state the point that the spiritual power is much more a blessing than the physical power indeed. Allah has created the world in such a way that all good leads to peace and true pleasure while all which is bad leads only to disaster, a complete disintegration of the setting of life. Please note that the Truth has always been one while evil took many colors to fight it and never succeeded. This clash of good & evil has been going on at every place. This is the same story which is repeated again & again and we are all part of it but certainly success is for the right ones. Now, the great story has assumed an international character, having somewhat a same sequence in the whole world. It seems that it is just a century or two before the end of the world and surely before the end, the Word of Allah will reign, as is written. This must be noted that all messengers of Allah were the healers of all spiritual ailments. To go for cruelty or to submit oneself for shamelessness in any form is indeed a spiritual disease which the messengers of Allah tried their best to cure by spreading the right concepts about all matters and the right attitude to take in all situation. Now, when there are no more messengers of Allah to come (as the Holy Prophet MUHAMMAD PBUH was the last one), we must do the job collectively and even individually in the same manner by indicating the right way to take according to Islam in every matter of life and must not be discouraged by what we have to face. This is the only correct way to get the job done, and please note here that this is an Islamic concept that every person has been born with a sense of Truth (i.e. born on FITRAT but detail is not desired here) and so as we go on putting the right way in front of people, time will come when the voice inside will answer. For that time, we must wait and go on patiently with the work of spreading the teachings of Islam. Surely if the Islamic concept regarding twelve things is totally understood, that understanding will cause the total understanding of Islam very simple and easy. These twelve are :- (1) TRUST (2) TAUFIQ (3) STOPPING OF MEANS (4) WEIGHT (5) WISDOM (6) EQUALITY (7) JIHAD (8) RIGHTS OF NON-MUSLIMS (9) KNOWLEDGE (10) PSYCHOLOGY (11) MEDICINE (12) PHYSICAL APPEARANCE Let us consider these 12 points in some detail. TRUST :- The Islamic teachings give the concept of TRUST. This means that the true possession of all things is of ALLAH only and men have actually been relied upon to use it in accordance with the teachings of Islam. Strength, Wealth, Fame etc. all are the gifts of Allah which must be put to use by a person's efforts only for Allah. The Holy Book Quran demands that all the things which a man wants to get must be had by keeping Islam in view and all the things which he possesses or earns must also be used in accordance with the Islamic teachings, the Commands of Allah. TAUFIQ :- This is of course very clear that whatever a man does with true faith will pay him greatly after this life but even in this world a special return of a good deed is presented to the person doing good. Take the matter like this that where a man practices NAMAZ, he gets an immediate reward of getting the TAUFIQ of another Namaz. In other words, when a man says the prayers of MAGHRIB he gets the Taufiq of the prayers of ISHA, and because of ISHA he gets the Taufiq of FAJAR and because of that, gets the Taufiq of ZOHAR & ASAR. Thus a good deed brings another good deed and so a good person goes on to become a symbol of righteousness and with that, of humanity. The Holy Quran states "Whoever believed in Allah and clutched Him properly, so very soon He will enter them in His Blessing and His Care and will guide them towards Him the right way" (Sura Nahal - 97). So a clean life is promised in the world for good deeds committed with Faith while good return will also be had after this life. In the same way, wrong type of deeds attract all evil and when a person persists on such practice, a time comes when that person considers only evil as good and this is the place where the true Guidance is totally put away from him. An AYAT says "Indeed the people who believed, then rejected the Truth, then believed then again rejected the Truth then went on ahead in this rejection, Allah will certainly not forgive them nor will He guide them to the right way"(Sura Nisa - 137). Taufiq may be understood more by the study of the works of the great scholars of Islam, if desired. STOPPING OF MEANS :- This third concept to be understood here is known as SADD-e-ZARAI which means the stopping of means. Islam commands to keep away from all those things which have the potentials to lead to some big evil just as it orders to take up all things which make the right deeds easy. This keeping away from certain things for the sake of not falling into big sins is the stopping of means. Adam, Salam on him, was ordered to keep away from certain tree to avoid any chance of eating the prohibited fruit while an Ayat says "And do not go near any shamelessness, may they be open or may they be hidden" (Sura ANAAM - 151). At another place the Holy Book says "And do not go even near adultery for it is a great shamelessness and a very wrong way" (Sura BANI ISRAEL - 32). The stopping of means is in truth a strong barrier against all kinds of shamelessness and this is the reason for the command of not making or taking pictures of living beings and the command of HIJAB. WEIGHT :- One of the Islamic teachings is that weight always remains in favor of the Truth, though the supporters of evil may be present in a great number. The point is that there always remains a sense of Truth collectively. This Islamic concept tells us to take the argument and the stance of those who base their reasoning on the three basic sources of the Islamic Commands and neglect the number of people which a matter may have at its back. It is the weight which has to be considered, not the number for a matter to make it acceptable. In the day of judgment, the verdict will be based on weight and a few good deeds done with complete faith may be able to defend a person from Jahannum, though he may have the number of sins much more than the good deeds. The Holy Quran points out "Say that filth and purity is not equal though the quantity of filth may amaze you so fear Allah, O persons of understanding, so that you may achieve success" (Sura Maida-100). WISDOM :- This is the fifth Islamic concept I would like to put into my discussion here. This also like others, is a wonderful concept. According to Islam, the definition of this term is that "To put the knowledge of Islam into practice correctly is WISDOM". This means that to apply the knowledge of Islam, a person must have the understanding of the situation that person is in, of the place he wants to impress, of the power of acceptance of the people he is with and in fact all the matters relating to making easy the practice of Islam. To educate in HIKMAT (Wisdom) was one of the tasks given to the great man & the last messenger Janab Muhammad PBUH and the definition I have just written about Wisdom can be seen with total adherence to Islamic teachings in the Holy Quran (See Sura Baqara-269, Sura AAL-e-IMRAN - 164, Sura Nahal - 125). Please note that though I am forwarding arguments for the concepts given here but more reasoning is available in my other writings in Urdu. EQUALITY :- I consider this concept so important that I have devoted a whole book to the subject of EQUALITY and in fact that was my first writing by the name of "MUSAWAT KA ISLAMI TASAWWUR" (published 1983). The first thing to note here is that "All persons are equal in the eyes of Allah regarding the things which a person is unable to change by efforts". Thus, a person must not worry about things like why was she born a woman, why was he or she born at this time or at this place, why was he or she born crippled and so on as in regards to AKHIRAT (true life after this life), these things are unimportant. The second thing to note here is that "Each & Every person is getting examined here, which will clarify whether he or she deserves JANNAT or not and that asks to pay total attention to the power of action guiding it towards the collection of good deeds". The third thing to note here is that "Each person has his or her rights and duties and those are totally interrelated and must be observed accordingly". With these three points in view, the Islamic concept becomes quite clear that Islam values that person, man or woman, who has a more pious nature and the true success i.e. of AKHIRAT (true life after this life) is only for those who are given JANNAT due to their complete belief in Allah and the good deeds according to that belief. This can be achieved by putting the efforts in a right way and everybody, man or woman, has a full chance to get the true success so nobody must complain (though the rights & duties are laid taking into account whether a person is a man or woman of course). Please note that, in this world, woman has been given in the custody of man and that is a shelter for her taking the point positively as Allah has given command to some over some naturally for the sake of examination (See Sura ANAAM - the last Ayat). This is not because woman is a lower creature than man or cannot achieve high status in Akhirat but this is a way things are set by Allah our True Lord so that the worldly matters may proceed in a smooth manner and so that He may put all persons into an examination by the rights & duties laid for each other to know the true color of each & everyone for the Judgment after this worldly life. I would repeat, for the sake of clarification, that if a person is not the father of his father or the elder one in the house, this is not a matter of complain. Such is the matter of man & woman. Each one has been appointed his or her own duties to fulfill and male or female characteristics respectively to aid in the fulfillment of those duties to achieve glory. Here, women have been put into man's care and he indeed possesses a commanding position over her but the success in AKHIRAT is based on the right way of efforts and that is what matters. JIHAD :- The term according to Islam means to use one's abilities extensively and to put one's efforts exhaustingly in the way of Allah. Commonly, it is used to denote the war against non-Muslims for the sake of the glory of Islam. Keeping this common use of the term in view, I would comment that Islam has not spread by sword but whenever & wherever sword has come into action, it has been used for punishment and for creating fear for mischievous people but never for spreading Islam as is wrongly assumed by the non-Muslims due to the little understanding of Islam and the history of Muslims after Muhammad. The truth is that Islam has spread by good faith, sacrifice and tolerance as can be easily verified by history. Even common sense confirms the statement as the places where Islam took hold are still with the Muslims in these times when they are totally in the state of disorientation (with the exception of Spain which was lost due to Muslim's own foolishness and disintegration at that time) and the places where Muslims have lost power to govern, even there a good many people have saved their true faith and are living as Muslims. What Islam teaches is that all the world is actually of Allah and in the world man has to enforce only His Law. The true Muslims have to act on His orders in such a way that lives of every people may be for Allah only. Whatever knowledge of the truth they have, they must spread it with wisdom in all corners of the world. Before the conveying of the message of Islam, there can be no Jihad but however, once the Truth as is clarified by the Islamic teachings is fully known, the wrong people must accept the same and if they reject it, then it is asked of Muslims to fight them so as to punish them as the appointed force of Allah. This is JIHAD which may even take place as an attack just like defense for the cause of Islam. If the true Muslims do not find enough strength to fight the wrong people, they must ask for mercy from Allah who will certainly protect the true Muslims and will punish the wrong-doers HIMSELF. Jihad is the elimination of all evil and a great blessing in truth. This is the way it must be taken and no other indeed. RIGHTS OF NON-MUSLIMS :- There is a principle which Islam gives in the matter of non-Muslims that they must not be stopped from earning their living in any way except when they become a danger to the Islamic society. Non-Muslims, even though they are on the wrong path as Islam takes it, have the physical needs like all people and this world is a place of examination (DAR UL IMTEHAN) not the place of judgment (DAR UL JAZA). If they live in an Islamic Society with an agreement with Muslims, they must not be troubled in such a way that they may not find themselves able to earn their living. This has to be noted here that non-Muslims can fulfill their physical needs by their efforts but we must see to this that they also are called towards Islam & this true path of life must fully be presented to them (this in fact is their right on all Muslims). It is however, their own wish to accept it or reject it. Please note that the teaching of JIHAD will not be applied here as these are ZIMMI (non-Muslims living with an agreement with the Muslims), and they must be given total care. KNOWLEDGE :- Knowledge, as all gifts of Allah, must be used for the betterment of human beings in accordance with the teachings of Islam. Today, it is seen that knowledge is mostly used and imparted for worldly benefits. Although the present education may be adopted in an Islamic society giving it an Islamic touch here & there yet I would take the opportunity to comment upon an additional set up for education here that in the Islamic Society, such a set up must also be made where no education is given before age 6 years except for the education at home; Education is given in 3 phases where every phase is of 3 years and it is imparted only at day time whether public or private; admission for the first phase takes place at age 6 to 9, for the second phase at the age 9 to 12 while for the third phase it takes place at the age 12 to 15. The education hours may remain 3 continuous hours daily preferably from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.; all study must remain somehow connected with the study of man as that in truth is knowledge and therefore General Knowledge, History & Geography, Medicine, Law of the Islamic country, Army education, Economics and above all the study of the Islamic teachings will be given a special attention; males only must be educated at the third phase and they must be taught by male teachers while at the period of second phase male & female students must be educated separately with male teachers for males and female teachers for females while at the first phase, both male & female children may be educated together though teachers there must only be female indeed; There must be no examination and no beatings for the sake of study in this set up of education in the Islamic society. PSYCHOLOGY :- As far as Psychology is concerned, the error of the students of psychology is that they don't have a sketch of a right person (the symbol of perfection) by which they may understand how a right person must be and treat the affected one accordingly; They talk about understanding the inside of people but they don't even know this fact or overlook this fact purposely that Human Beings have an inclination towards the Right and the spirit takes to what is correct as is clearly stated in Hadees. This is why it seems that they themselves show a psychic tension when they try to heal someone suffering from psychic tension. Let me put the point this way that as man has a system of defense in his body with Leukocytes fighting against the attackers on body with anti-bodies and even without them, eating the foreign bodies for the sake of the health of the body, the spirit of man also has the ability to fight against those things which are disastrous to the spiritual health and a defense mechanism to keep man into a healthy form in the spiritual sense. Jealousy, pride of being high among all people, hatred of the right ones and even the right teachings, untimely anger and in a nutshell all kinds of cruelty and all kinds of shamelessness are included in the spiritual ailments. Spirit achieves power by good deeds and gets weak by evil deeds just as the body of a person remains healthy when the principles for the physical fitness are observed and gets unhealthy if they are totally neglected. Allah has indeed made the world in such a way that all good leads to peace of mind while all evil brings to man total disintegration & complete confusion in life with no guidance remaining for him whatsoever. I would like to point out the place of a few things here according to the Islamic teachings which have their effect on psyche (though they are often taken as of no value & with no influence in the lives of men which is not correct). From the Islamic point of view, there are three conditions to fulfill in these matters specially Astrology, Numerology, Tarot cards etc. which are taken to see the hidden matters relating to man, that "The faith must be correct i.e. Allah only is truly Powerful and these things like others, can put an effect only by His permission". The second thing is that "The rules of such things if & when a man understands them by observation, devotion and total application of self, must not be disclosed as this may cause the foolish people to lose the way and mislead others without consideration of HIKMAT (Wisdom)". The third thing is that "These must not be put to use for worldly profits but must only be used for the benefits of AKHIRAT by applying these things for the study of man". This also implies that such things must not be used for casting a bad spell as some people do with these things. Here, I would point out that Astrology in particular must be studied and applied with total care as the rules here are great in number though basics are limited which when come into grasp, the judgment of the person greatly benefits his understanding in this matter. Those who consider such things just a pastime or who want to seek future through these things considering them as some kind of fortune telling system must not study such things due to SADD-e-ZARAI as this can easily cause tensions to them putting them into a state of wishful thinking or in a state of a useless fear of some unknown fate. With the remark that there is much to learn for those in Psychology who consider themselves total experts in the field, let us go on to MEDICINE. MEDICINE :- From the Islamic viewpoint, there is a rule to observe in matters regarding Medicine and Surgery that "By the medical or surgical treatment, the assistance of the body must be in view and no reduction of any part or even addition of any part must take place in the body as that is against the natural way of living and therefore against the natural way of life i.e. Islam". This type of attitude comes under the changing of creation which is not allowed (Sura NISA - 118 & 119). Keeping this rule in view, it must be understood that blood may be given & taken as it does not cause any reduction or any addition in the body parts as its transfusion is due to necessity and must be uptil necessity and also the use of skin of one place for other place in body is allowed due to the necessity faced but transplantation of any part is totally against Islam indeed. The organs transplanted are not grown by the body again and this kind of surgery is against the great respect given to man by Islam and therefore totally prohibited in my opinion. This goes well even if the organ is donated and that is taken from the cadaver, as the body of everybody is the property of Allah in which a person must not put commands of his own self as that is totally against Islam. Also, there is a point to note by the Islamic viewpoint which is being omitted in today's living that mixed working is totally against Islam and both of these things are found extensively in the Medical & Surgical field. This also implies that women are not allowed to nurse men and men are not allowed to tend women and that statement also goes for surgery as must be understood by all male & female medical students if we really want to make a great advancement in our own way in medicine and more than that surgery in an Islamic Society. PHYSICAL APPEARANCE :- As for Physical Appearance, please note that to keep beard for a Muslim adult man is a necessity and whatever dress he chooses to wear can be taken as quite well if that is not too "fashionable" as Simplicity is one of our basic traits. Though shirts and trousers are quite well with men, women must always wear eastern closed dresses with a long cloth above as other than these, no dress really fulfills the demands of Islamic teachings. It is indeed not necessary for a Muslim to wear always a cap or turban and put a cloth on shoulders and wear a lose pajamas above the toes. Though even this one is quite well, but it in not necessary and only is optional indeed. I would like to put the matter in three points keeping a Muslim person in view so that the concerned issue becomes totally clear. The first one is that "Beard must be kept". The second one is that "Necktie must not be put into use as the Christians consider this a symbol of crucifixion of Jesus Christ (Salam on him) while we Muslims believe that the great man & messenger was taken alive above into heavens and was never crucified". Here, I would like to mark a great difference between Islam and Christianity. While Christianity takes man as impure at birth needing baptism, Islam does not. In fact, on the contrary, Islam takes a child very pure at birth and born on Fitrat (or in other words with a natural tendency towards the Truth). That is why AZAAN (call towards prayers) is given in the child's ears so that he or she may feel at ease after birth. This difference is actually a result of the view about the error of Adam & Eve that our Christian fellow beings take the world as a place where the bad consequences of this error must be faced or in other words, they take the world as a punishment whereas Islam takes it as an examination. Again, they take that Jesus Christ, Salam on him, has given a great sacrifice, as he was crucified so that the wrong doings of all men & women may be washed away, while Islam clarifies about this great man & messenger of Allah that, like his birth, his departure from the world too was amazingly unique. He was not crucified but taken above totally alive as stated in Sura NISA and the teachings of Islam indicate that everybody has to face his deeds alone. This difference of viewing the man's place has made a lot of difference and though good Christians have a great inclination towards the love of Humanity (which I hope sincerely would lead them to see the Truth as it is, someday), this view does put an effect upon their ability of collecting good deeds. May Allah guide every understanding man & woman towards Islam. The third one of the three points to note regarding the Physical Appearance is that "A Muslim man must not put an emphasis upon fashions for what he wears". If these simple three points are observed, I understand that a Muslim men can achieve a correct appearance as Islam demands and this will make him more conscious, I consider, of being a Muslim at every time and at every place, making him care about Islam in all walks of life and all matters of men indeed. These are the twelve things which if understood clearly can make the study of Islam completely easy and also can make the application of Islam in practice very convenient for all those who are really interested in the making of an Islamic Society. From the times of Adam, Islam has come as the Truth uptil this day winning all struggles with evil and it will again no doubt, for the final settlement. With many negative points present against the coming of an Islamic Society into being, I am sure this is the very time when Islam will manifest its light to the whole world for the sake of making of an Islamic Society. Like many Muslims, I also feel that the time has come; we all just have to wait & see. MUHAMMAD SALEEM DADA A-8, Nomee Arcade, JM-683, Fatima Jinah Colony, Jamshed Road, Karachi E-mail : saleemdada@yahoo.com